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2/11/09 5:31 AM | Ricky Dimon
Andy Roddick and Ernests Gulbis advance to the San Jose second round on Tuesday. Their victories ensure a second-round rematch of an entertaining clash at the same stage of the 2008 U.S. Open.
Ernests Gulbis d. Ricardo Mello 7-6(4), 6-4
Ranked 45th in the world to Mello's 174th, Gulbis was the heavy favorite on paper, especially with an indoor hard court to give him a surface advantage. Mello even needed a lucky loser spot to get into the SAP Open main draw, but he stayed competitive with Gulbis right until the end. It was the 20-year-old Latvian who had to save three break points en route to a first-set tiebreaker, whereas Mello never faced a break chance in his six service games. Gulbis, however, took control of the 'breaker in the early going and cruised seven points to four. In the second set, Gulbis cleaned up his return game and got a look at four break points in the Brazilian's first four service games. Mello saved all of them for 4-4, but with the pressure on while serving to stay in the match at 4-5, Gulbis finally capitalized on his fifth break opportunity--and first match point. It took the favorite one hour and 25 minutes to book a place in the second round, the stage in which he has bowed out of eight straight tournaments. Gulbis will have to upset top-seeded Andy Roddick on Thursday if he wants to avoid making it nine straight.
Chris Guccione d. Guillermo Canas 7-6(7), 7-5
There were plenty of momentum swings in Guccione's straight-set win over Canas on Tuesday afternoon, but most of the first set was straightforward and progressed as expected. Neither player was troubled on serve until the twelfth game of the set and Guccione did not even win a single point in his first three return games. With the Argentine serving at 5-6, however, Guccione raced to a 0-40 lead for triple-set point. Nonetheless, Canas stormed back to force a tiebreaker and used that momentum to seize two set points of his own at 6-4 in the decider. In yet another reversal of fortunate, Guccione saved both of the set points and eventually prevailed nine points to seven. Two breaks of serve were exchanged in the second frame of play en route to 5-5, when the 6'7'' Australian secured a decisive break. Canas was done in by serving at 44 percent in set two and it cost him as his opponent served out the proceedings at 6-5. Guccione, who blasted 16 aces, needed one hour and 33 minutes to advance to the second round, where he will meet 2008 San Jose runner-up Radek Stepanek.
Andy Roddick d. Michael Ryderstedt 6-0, 7-6(3)
The SAP Open's defending champion, three-time winner Roddick, got his title defense going on Tuesday night with a straight-set victory despite a second-set scare. It looked like it would be a whole lot easier after a first set that Roddick absolutely dominated. Ryderstedt, who won three qualifying matches to get into the main draw, won an abysmal five points in the entire opening frame of play. The 368th-ranked Swede won a single point against Roddick's serve and only won three of ten points on his own first serve. Out of nowhere, Ryderstedt somehow turned things around against the No. 1 seed in set two. There were no breaks of serve en route to a second-set tiebreaker, but Roddick had to save three break points along the way whereas the heavy underdog faced none. In the end, however, it was Roddick's experience and superior talent that won out. The sixth-ranked American seized a mini-break on the first point of the decider and never looked back, taking it seven points to three. Thursday's Roddick-Gulbis clash is a rematch of a second-round encounter at the 2008 U.S. Open in which Gulbis dominated the first set and served for a two-set lead. Roddick, however, thrilled a night-session crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium by storming back to win 7-5 in the fourth.
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